I have mixed feelings. I’m sad for leaving but happy with this new job in the UFC. I remember when I met [Junior dos Santos], he was brave in training, and before his UFC debut against the current champion Fabricio Werdum, I told Dana White to watch for his uppercut. And that’s how he beat him. I have good eyes for new talent, and I will look for new talents in this new generation.

We all knew how the main event of UFC 190 was going to end. We had it figured out the moment the fight was booked. Yet, somehow Ronda Rousey still managed to wow us all. The women’s bantamweight champion truly has something special…and that’s the ability to get hundreds of thousands of people to sit through not one but two TUF Brazil finals (and pay for the privilege) just to watch her fight. Incredible.

UFC 190 turned out to be a much better card in practice than on paper and most indicators are suggesting it was more successful than UFC 189. Rousey is well on her way to becoming the new GSP, if she hasn’t already surpassed him, and we can likely expect many more ‘RONDA ROUSEY and a bunch of other fighters’ -type fight cards to come.

In a story eerily reminiscent of the movie Swordfish (minus Halle Berry’s world-renowned torso acting skills), it seems as if Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira just narrowly avoided an ongoing hostage situation in a Brasilian hotel this morning.

According to Globo, the MMA legend and his brother were staying at the Saint Peter Hotel in Brasilia, Brazil over the weekend, when they (along with nearly 300 other hotel guests) were evacuated from the building by fireman due to an apparent “gas leak.” The situation was far more severe in reality, as a crazed gunman had actually taken a hotel employee hostage on the 13th floor*, handcuffed him, and strapped a bomb to his chest (see photo above).

The incident began around 8 a.m. this morning, when the suspect was spotted climbing up the side of the building by several concerned guests. While information is limited, it is believed that the gunman has a grudge with the Brazilian government and “is calling for ‘the fall of Dilma’ among other things.” Dilma, of course, refers to Brazil’s 36th and current President Dilma Rousseff.

A spokesman for the Brasilian police stated that it has not yet been confirmed whether the white cylinders seen on the hostage’s vest are actual bombs or not, but that “Security evacuated the hotel and three negotiators are trying to resolve the situation peacefully. A bomb disposal unit is on the scene.”

There was a time, not too long ago, when Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira was considered indestructible. Beatable maybe, but finishable? Please. What was Fedor or Cro Cop or Werdum going to do to Big Nog that a Mac truck hadn’t already done? You could drop an anvil on this guy’s face, an anvil I tells ya, and his jaw would split the sumbitch in half like a coconut.

Lately, however, Nogueira has looked something less than invincible in the octagon. He’s looked slow, tired, vulnerable. That he’s been finished in all five of his past losses (alongside which he has earned just three wins) further points to his ever-deteriorating skillset, with his most recent knockout loss to Roy Nelson being a particularly tough pill to swallow. Or even look at. Yet he forges ahead, despite near constant protests by fans, media members, and most likely his family to call it quits.

I know, you’ve heard this all before — hell, I’ve probably lamented Nog’s stubbornness a couple dozen times by now. But today brings good news, Potato Nation! In an interview with Ag.Fight (via MMAFighting), “Minotauro” finally discussed his retirement! Hallelujer!!

In short, it would appear that Big Nog’s body is trying to tell him something. Unfortunately for his arms, legs, torso, and jaw, his mind has apparently yet to receive the message. It was revealed over the weekend by Nogueira himself that the former PRIDE champion had tore his ACL just days prior to his contest with Nelson, which might have explained why he looked as if he was fighting underwater in the minutes leading up to his brutal loss:

I just got my exams, and I unfortunately tore my ACL. Three days before the fight, I was training wrestling and I twisted my right knee working on a single leg. I stopped training, and I felt it during the fight. I did the exams as soon as I returned to Brazil, and I found out this morning that I hurt the ACL and LCL.

I’m going to need surgery. I had the same surgery on the left knee three years ago, and now it’s on the right knee.

So basically, Nogueira’s body is a ticking time bomb. But rest assured, he still wants another fight…

And so, Big Country snaps a two-fight losing streak, and claims his seventh knockout victory in the UFC. Meanwhile, Nogueira has lost four out of his last six fights, and public calls for his retirement will surely pop again. (We’d support that, by the way.)

Check out full results from UFC Fight Night Abu Dhabi after the jump. If you watched the event on Fight Pass, please share your thoughts in the comments section.

The removal of Craig vs. Camozzi means that the Abu Dhabi card will only feature eight matches, making it the briefest UFC card since…well look, I’m not going to burn 15 minutes on Wikipedia trying to find the answer to that, but it’s been a while.

During last night’s edition of UFC Tonight, Ariel Helwani hinted that a bout between “Big Country” and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (a.k.a “Big Nog”) is being targeted for the UFC’s return to Abu Dhabi in May. Here’s how I know this: